Boot for iron



Feb. 25, 1964 M. M. MCBRIDE 3,121,965

BOOT FOR IRON Filed July 13, 1962 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR. MCB/Zd Feb.25, 1964 i M. M. MCBRIDE 3,121,965

BOOT FOR IRON Filed July 13, 1962 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 IN VEN TOR.

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United States Patent 3,121,965 B001 FOR IRON Mary M. McBride, 4142Archer Ave., Chicago 32, Ill. Filed July 13, 1962, Ser. No. 202557 7Claims. (CI. 38?7) This invention relates to a boot for an iron and,more particularly, to a boot for a steam iron.

The danger of scorching, searing or burning cloth being ironed is everpresent when the metal sole plate of an iron is in direct contact withthe cloth. If the contact between the cloth and iron is undulyprolonged, through inadvertence or otherwise, the cloth may be burned,seared, scorched or the like. In addition, an undesirable sheen or shineoften results from direct contact of the metal sole plate of the ironwith dress fabrics such as silk, nylon, rayon and the like during evenordinary ironing operations.

Steam irons, aside from presenting these problems, also have anotherdesirable tendency. That is to discharge foreign matter with the steam,this foreign matter staining or otherwise ntarring the appearance of thefabric being ironed. The foreign matter is generally decompositionproducts of the water employed to make the steam, but it may also berust flakes and the like from the iron.

In the past, pressing cloths have been employed to reduce these hazards.However, this technique is particularly cumbersome since the pressingcloth must be moved independently of the iron. As a result boots forirons have been suggested. In all instances these boots have been shapedto substantially contfomn to the sole plate of the iron. These bootshave been an improvement over pressing cloths; however, it has beenfound that these boots sulfer from at least three disadvantages. In thefirst place they have a very short life, as they tend to wear out attheir front end where the toe of the sole plate of the iron ispositioned. This is the result of excessive heat being generated in thetoe of the iron and the continual rubbing of the toe of the iron againstthe boot.

Secondly, with the use of cloth boots the iron must be lifted, ratherthan glided from one area to another. With these known boots, as theyconform substantially to the sole plate of the iron, there is onlyafforded an ironing area as large as the sole plate of the iron. Thistherefore necessitates frequent movement of the iron.

Thirdly, those boots known in the art are not reversible end-to-endand/or inside-out. Lacking this versatility, these boots are prone towear out in a short time.

It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a boot foran iron which overcomes or alleviates the disadvantages of the bootsdiscussed hereinabove.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide a hoot for aniron which is durable and affords an ironing area larger than the soleplate of the iron.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide a boot for aniron which may readily be removed from the iron and reversed end-toendand/or inside-out, if desired.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide a steam ironboot which may be readily and inexpensively constructed.

The invention, both as to its organization and method of operation,taken with further objects and advantages thereof, will best beunderstoodfiby reference to the folice lowing description taken inconjunction with the accompanying drawings in which:

FIGURE 1 is a perspective view of an iron having thereon a bootembodying the features of the present invention;

FIGURE 2 is a top view of the iron and boot illustrated in FIGURE 1;

FIGURE 3 is a perspective view of a modified boot embodying the featuresof the present invention;

FIGURE 4 is an end view of the boot shown in [FIG- URE 3; and

FIGURE 5 is a view from the inside of the boot of the end shown invFIGURE 4.

Referring to the drawings, and more particularly to FIGURES l and 2, theboot of the present invention is indicated generally by reference number10. It is illustrated as it would appear on an iron .12, in thisinstance a steam iron though it will be understood that the boot it} maybe used on any type of iron.

The boo-t it? has a body member -14 made of a single piece of clothmaterial, such as cotton drill, a drill with a silicon coating or thelike. This cloth material is sub stantially heat resistant, but willallow heat to pass therethrough onto the garment being ironed.

The body member 14 has V-shaped slots (not shown) at each end along thelongitudinal axis thereof. Opposite legs of these slots are sewntogether to form seams 16. The stitching for the seams 16 is not visibleas it is on the interior of the boot 10 as illustrated in FIGURES 1 and2. The interior portions of the legs of these slots are not sewntogether so that Vertically extending ope-nings 18 are formed at eachend of the boot 10. In this manner the boot 10 has formed therein arelatively large central opening [into which the lower half of the iron12, including its sole plate 20, may be placed as shown in FIGURES 1 and2. To hold the boot it) on the iron 12, and to permit its removaltherefrom with ease, a holding member 22, in this instance a band ofelastic material, is secured to the periphery of the central opening outthe boot 10. The elastic band 22 is held in place by stitching or anyother suitable means. It will be understood that the holding means maybe a drawstring arrangement, a resilient spring or the like positionedabout the periphery of the central opening of the boot 10.

The toe 24 of the iron '12 extends through one of the verticallyextending slots .18 in the boot 1!). This serves to position the iron 12properly :within the boot 10 for reasons more apparent hereinafter andalso prevents the toe 2.4 of the iron 12 from continually poking theboot 10. The latter has been found to be a cause of excessive wear andultimate rupture to heretofore known iron boots, particularly since thetoe of the iron is so pointed and the hottest point on the iron soleplate 20.

The vertically extending openings 18 in the boot 10 alleviate theseproblems. Stitching 26 about the periphcry of the openings 18 preventstheir becoming enlarged upon use and is also sufiiciently large andthick enough to prevent the toe 26 of the iron I12 from resting orsliding on the garment being ironed. The openings 18 are preferablyabout one inch long and afford the further advantage of exposing thehot-test part of the iron 12, namely, the toe 24, to the atmospherewhereby its temper-attire is kept at a minimum.

As seen in FIGURES 1 and 2, the boot 10 is substantially larger than thesole plate 14 of the iron 12. This allows room within the boot It forthe heel of the iron 12 to be swung in an are about the toe 20* of theiron 12. Sufficient freedom is allowed in the boot 1! such that this aremay preferably be in the range of about two to five inches in length.This freedom affords a larger ironing or pressing area without having tolift the iron 12.

Since the boot 10 has slots 18 at both ends, the boot 10 may be removedand the iron inserted into the boot in the reverse direction so as toutilize the other end of the boot 10, i.e., end-to-end reversal.Furthermore, the entire boot 10 may be turned inside-out and theinterior of the boot 10 used as the exterior. This is inside-outreversal. Both types of reversibility offered by the boot 10 affordmeans by which the life of the boot 10 may be significantly lengthened.

Referring now to FIGURES 3-5, there is illustrated a modified bootembodying the features of the present invention and indicated generallyby reference numeral 39. The boot has a main body member 32 made of asingle piece of cloth material, such as cotton drill, drill with asilicon coating or the like. This main body member 32 is similar to thebody member 1% discussed hereinbefore and therefore has V-shaped slots(not shown) at each end along the longitudinal axis thereof. In thisembodiment however reinforcing members 34 are employed at each end ofthe boot 39. The reinforcing members 34 are single U-shaped pieces ofcloth having legs 35. The cloth employed for the reinforcing members 34is the same as or similar to the material used for the main body member32. The reinforcing member 34 is placed over one of the slots in such amanner that it overlies and corresponds substantially to the V-shapedslot in the main body 32. The reinforcing member 34 and the main bodymember 32 are then attached along the entire periphery of thereinforcing member 34 by stitching 36. The inwardly extending portion ofthe legs 35 of the reinforcing member 34 are then sewn together to formseams 38. The stitching for the seam 38 is not visible in thesedrawings.

The innermost portions of the legs 35 are not sewn together so that avertically extending opening 40 is formed at the end of the boot 30. Theperiphery of the opening 40 is formed by a continuous seam between thereinforcing member 34 and the main body member 32 as a result ofstitching 36. This seam is bound around the periphery of the opening 40by stitching 42 (FIGURE 5) and then folded back and secured byadditional stitching (not shown) to the reinforcing member 34. In thismanner the toe of an iron extending through the opening 40 will belifted off the garment being ironed for the reasons given hereinbeforein discussing the boot 10. It will be understood that the otherreinforcing member 34 is attached to the main body member 32 at theother V-shaped slot in the same manner.

In addition, the boot 3% has a peripheral border member 44 secured tothe main body 32 by stitching 46. The peripheral border member 44 formsa large central opening 48 into which an iron may be placed in the samemanner discussed hereinbefore with respect to the boot 10. As theperipheral border member 44 will be subjected to less heat and to littleor no stress it may be made of ordinary cotton or the like. This reducesthe overall cost of the boot 30.

To hold the boot 30 on the iron, and to permit it to be removedtherefrom with ease, a holding member 50, such as a band of elastic, asillustrated, is secured to the peripheral border member 44 about thecentral opening 48. In this instance the elastic band 50 is sewn to theborder member 44. It will be understood that the holding means may be adrawstring arrangement, a resilient spring or the like positioned aboutthe periphery of the central opening 43 of boot 30, but the elastic band50 is preferred as it is the least expensive means to accomplish thedesired result.

The boot 30 is employed in the same manner discussed hereinabove withrespect to the boot 10. Likewise the main body member 32 is large enoughto permit the heel of the iron to swing in an are preferably in therange of about two to five inches so as to provide a larger ironingarea. The principal advantage of the boot 30 is that it is made moredurable by the particular manner in which the reinforcing members 34 areemployed.

It will be understood from the foregoing description that the boots It}and 30 are symmetrically constructed whereby end-to-end and/ orinside-out reversibility is enhanced.

While the embodiments described herein are at present considered to bepreferred, it is understood that various modifications and improvementsmay be made therein, and it is intended to cover in the appended claimsall such modifications and improvements as fall within the true spiritand scope of the invention.

What is desired to be claimed and secured by Letters Patent of theUnited States is:

1. A boot for an iron having a metal sole plate with a toe, said bootcomprising a cloth body member having a central opening through whichsaid sole plate may be placed into said cloth body member, said clothbody member having holding means attached thereto which secures saidbody member to said iron, said body member having a preformed,reinforced opening through which said toe of said iron extends when saidiron is being used.

2. The boot of claim 1 wherein said body member has a first and secondend, said first end having said preformed, reinforced opening therein,said second end having another preformed, rcinforced opening therein,said body member being large enough to receive said sole plate when saidtoe is in either of said preformed, reinforced openings.

3. A boot for an iron having a metal sole plate with a toe, said bootcomprising a cloth body member having a central opening through whichsaid sole plate may be placed into said cloth body member, said clothbody member having holding means attached thereto which secures saidbody member to said iron, said body member having a first openingthrough which said toe of said iron extends when said iron is beingused, said first opening having a stitched peripheral border, saidstitched border being thick enough to prevent the toe of said iron fromresting on material being ironed.

4. The boot of claim 3 wherein said body member has a first and secondend, said first end having said first opening therein, said second endhaving a second opening with a stitched peripheral border therein, saidbody member being large enough to receive said sole plate when said toeis in either of said first and second openings.

5. A boot for an iron having a metal sole plate with a toe, said bootcomprising a cloth main body member having a central opening throughwhich said sole plate may be placed into said main body member, saidmain body member having holding means attached thereto which securessaid body member to said iron, said main body member having a firstopening through which said toe of said iron extends when said iron isbeing used, a cloth reinforcing member secured to said main body memberabout said first opening, said reinforcing member and main body memberforming a seam about the periphery of said first opening, stitchingbinding said seam to form a binder which prevents the toe of said ironfrom resting on the material being ironed.

6. The boot of claim 5 wherein said main body member has a first andsecond end, said first end having said first opening therein, saidsecond end having a second opening and a second cloth reinforcing membersecured to said main body member about said second opening, said secondreinforcing member and main body member forming a second seam about theperiphery of said second opening, stitching binding said other seam toform another binder, said main body member being large enough to receivesaid sole plate when said toe is in either of said first and secondopenings.

7. A boot for an iron having a metal sole plate with a toe, said bootcomprising a cloth main body member having a central opening throughwhich said sole plate may be placed into said main body member, saidmain body member having holding means attached thereto which securessaid body member to said iron, said main body member comprising a singlepiece of cloth having two longitudinally extending slots at oppositeends thereof, U-shaped reinforcing members attached to said main bodymember in coinciding relationship with said slots, said U-shapedreinforcing members having legs which are sewn together for a portionthereof to form vertically extending openings at each end of said mainbody memher, said openings having a peripheral seam formed by iReferences (Iited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS BeckOct. 19, 1937 Weldon Nov. 17, 1953 Drummond May 1, 1956 Rogers July 4,1961

1. A BOOT FOR AN IRON HAVING A METAL SOLE PLATE WITH A TOE, SAID BOOTCOMPRISING A CLOTH BODY MEMBER HAVING A CENTRAL OPENING THROUGH WHICHSAID SOLE PLATE MAY BE PLACED INTO SAID CLOTH BODY MEMBER, SAID CLOTHBODY MEMBER HAVING HOLDING MEANS ATTACHED THERETO WHICH SECURES SAIDBODY MEMBER TO SAID IRON, SAID BODY MEMBER HAVING A PREFORMED,REINFORCED OPENING THROUGH WHICH SAID TOE OF SAID IRON EXTENDS WHEN SAIDIRON IS BEING USED.